§ Mr. RAMSAY MACDONALDasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether his attention has been drawn to the number of notices of concessions filed at Seccondee, Victoriaburg, and Kumasi for timber, rubber, and agricultural rights generally, and advertised in the Gold Coast Government "Gazette"; whether certificates of validity are being issued in respect to these concessions; whether he can lay papers showing that the courts are exercising proper care in protecting native rights in the districts affected by the concessions; and whether he has considered if the number of these concessions renders desirable further legislation to safeguard the rights of the native against the exploitation of companies who have acquired influence over chiefs?
Mr. HARCOURTMy attention has been drawn to the notices to which my hon. Friend refers, but I am informed by the Acting-Governor of the Gold Coast that these notices are quite untrustworthy as a guide to the amount of land which is being, or will be, alienated. I have no reason to think that the judges of the Supreme Court are failing to carry out to the best of their ability the duty of protecting native rights imposed upon them by the Concessions Ordinance. I will lay papers showing the area and situation of all land concessions hitherto granted in the Gold Coast; and also of the concessions which have formed the subject of notices in the Government Gazette during the years 1908-1910, but which have not yet been validated. I am not prepared to assert that the quantity of land alienated is unduly great, having regard to the large extent of these territories and the sparseness of the population, but I am carefully watching the situation, and am considering what further safeguards for the protection of the natives can be introduced.